The Johnson Ridge Trail just might be my favorite trail. Maybe because it’s located in the area that I grew up in. Maybe its because its a loop with an abundance of lake views or perhaps its a little bit of both. Either way I absolutely love this trail.
Nevertheless, I’ve had to chance to hike it twice, once in the summer and once in late fall. Both hikes were absolutely amazing! First of all, in the summertime the lake is full and the trail is lush and green. On the other hand In the winter the lake gets drained a bit, which provides cool views of the lake bottom. The trail is about 1.8 miles long. It takes me about 50 minutes to complete with me stopping along the way to take in the amazing lake views.
(Summertime picture)
(Late fall picture)
As you can see there is great differences from summer to late fall. Clearly, both times of year provide amazing views. There is one area halfway through the trail that I like to stop at. In this spot I can sit on the rocks right on the shore of the lake and just soak it all in.
Finally, there isn’t much elevation change on the trail. In total it’s about 30ft of elevation change throughout the trail which isn’t bad at all. I’ve had the pleasure of hiking at this trail twice. During both hikes I was able to enjoy the peace and quiet of the trail. In fact, I only met one other couple on the trail. The first time I hiked it, there were three well behaved dogs from the nearby community that walked some of the trail with me. In addition to getting to spend time hiking at the lake, I got to make a few canine friends as well. Which was super cool and fun.
For access to the Johnson Ridge Trail see the Alltrails App: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/tennessee/johnson-ridge-trail
Traveling through the area on the way to the Great Smokey Mountains? Check out our blog on the Oconaluftee River Trail in Cherokee NC: https://iveysadventures.com/oconaluftee-river-trail-great-smokey-mts-cherokee-nc/
